Optical instruments, such as surveying instruments are commonly used for distance measurement and comprise a complex arrangement of optical and electronic elements. In recent years, imaging devices have been integrated in surveying instruments providing digital video data of an object in addition to distance measurement information. The imaging and distance measurement information may include horizontal and vertical angles, a distance to the object and an image of the object revealing its structures. This information may then be used to create a three-dimensional representation of the object. However, due to the advancement of technology, a vast amount of data can be obtained through imaging and distance measurements, which has to be processed and analyzed correctly.
Three-dimensional and two-dimensional imaging tools, such as laser scanners and cameras, measure in an automatic way a large number of points on the surface of an object, and often output a point cloud as a data file. Such imaging tools are useful for capturing visual information of an environment or a facility, and are widely used in construction industry, civil engineering, and asset management, among other applications. For some applications, such as asset management, it is often desirable to integrate asset information with visual information. For example, an operator viewing a scanned image of a plant may want to view the asset information related to a particular asset appearing in the scanned image. The asset information may include, for example, manufacturer's name, model number, specifications, computer-added design (CAD) model, maintenance history, and the like. Conversely, an operator viewing a list of assets may want to see where a particular asset is located in the plant from the scanned image. For some other applications, it may be desirable to create CAD models of the objects captured by an imaging tool. There is currently a lack of efficient ways of linking asset information with visual information.
Thus, there is a need in the art for a method and system for identifying objects from images acquired using an imaging tool.